[ad_1]
Yes, according to Rasa Markauskaitė, a representative of the municipal administration, the goal is to encourage owners of abandoned and unused buildings to properly care for their properties. And it would also help to get rid of the “ghosts” of dangerous buildings that darken the face of the city. At the same time, it is hoped to harmonize property tax rates for areas that, due to their status, avoid such obligations, but are actually used for commercial purposes.
The municipal report notes that although façade restoration, road repair, and other city management programs are underway in Kaunas, there is still a problem of abandoned and maintenance-free real estate. The drive to manage the city effectively goes back to legal uncertainties. Therefore, an appeal to the ministries was initiated.
“We all want to live in an orderly city, so each one must assume at least some responsibility for it.” The municipality’s efforts alone are not enough here: the understanding of building owners, the desire to contribute, are also needed. There are many good examples of how old, maintenance-free buildings are reborn and help to beautify Kaunas face. Unfortunately, there are still a number of homeowners who avoid ordering and disgusting the entire environment with their negligence. We have to encourage and motivate them, ”said Kaunas Mayor Visvaldas Matijošaitis.
By tightening current property law, it would allow municipalities to collect property taxes from building owners who fail to ensure safety requirements or maliciously delay work, regardless of the building’s value. Such an obligation would also apply if it is established that the building is not used for its direct purpose. Then the property tax rate (up to 3%) would apply. This would encourage homeowners to invest in the maintenance and operation of their property, rather than keeping it abandoned and paying a higher annual fee for building maintenance.
The law now gives municipalities the right to draw up lists of abandoned and maintenance-free real estate. The objects included in them (far from everything) are subject to a higher property tax than that provided by law. Under current law, real estate is not subject to tax if the actual construction, reconstruction, revision, renovation, renovation, or use of the building has not yet been completed. Since the terms of such works are not clearly defined by law, they are often stuck for a long time, and critical building owners continue to take no action. Some hosts do not continue the process of changing the purpose of the building. Thus, abandoned commercial buildings become residential and evade the property tax. Elsewhere, the ruins become landfills in the middle of the city.
“There are still many abandoned and collapsed buildings in Kaunas, the condition of which has not changed in many years. We record obvious cases of abuse by manipulating faulty legal wording. Building owners cover them, avoiding liability and justifying their inaction. The construction or renovation of some buildings has been delayed or simply imitated for decades, and current laws continue to ensure that such objects do not disappear from the city map, “said Vilius Šiliauskas, director of the Kaunas Municipality Administration.
The proposed amendments to the law aim to reduce the number of critically ill buildings in the city, which not only obscures the image of the city, but also represents a real danger to the citizens who work in them or in the countries. Attention is also drawn to real estate that is not used for its intended purposes, but is exempt from tax due to its legal status. Currently, exceptions to the law apply to the real estate of bankrupt companies, as well as to all real property of traditional religious communities. According to the Kaunas City Municipality proposal, in cases where the property of these communities is used for commercial purposes or is abandoned, it would be taxed in the same way as objects that belong to anyone else.
After inspections of real estate objects in Kaunas, there were cases in which commercial companies operated in buildings belonging to religious communities. For example, an auto repair shop or a hair salon was found. The same is true of educational institutions. The nightclub facilities, which once operated in the old town, formally have the status of an educational purpose, and an abandoned one-story commercial building next to the apartment building in downtown Kaunas is registered as a residential dwelling.
The owners of “ghost” buildings do not shy away from using the loopholes in the law when taking out building permits, but they don’t actually do any work. There are almost curious cases when the windows and doors of buildings are closed with planks or panels, it is claimed that it is their proper maintenance.
“The legal framework should be improved in such a way as to ensure efficient management of real estate, and municipalities could guarantee a safe and orderly environment for people and equal rights for all real estate managers. We see the problems and are ready to solve them, but we do not have the legal means to do so. If the ministries take our proposals into account, more responsibility would fall on the owners of the objects and more transparency would automatically emerge in this area ”, is convinced the deputy mayor of Kaunas, Andrius Palionis.
No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written permission of ELTA.
[ad_2]
